Moneyball

Really enjoyable film that kept me engaged the entire time. Brad Pitt never disappoints, and Jonah Hill was superb as were all the supporting actors. I'd recommend you buy rather than rent as you'll definitely watch it more than once.

You don't have to be a baseball fan or a spreadsheets lover to enjoy Moneyball. The story of how an under-resourced team found a way to be smarter than their bigger and richer rivals has an appeal that works even if you're not sure what a strike is and aren't moved by the idea of someone pouring over data to find a different way of looking at things. That is a large part of why Moneyball, the movie of Michael Lewsis's book about the Oakland A's baseball team, is such an enjoyable movie. Add in some great acting, a script written by someone (West Wing's Aaron Sorkin) who values words rather than seeing them as placeholders between special effects, great editing of footage and a nicely judged music score and you have a wonderfully enjoyable movie. Even if you don't like baseball. Often the extras on a DVD are of limited value, but in this case - save for the one that give you the chance to watch Brad Pitt sitting laughing for several minutes - the extras add greatly to the film, both in explaining the context and (in the case of the deleted scenes) rounding out the characters nicely. Of course, being the film of a book there is the ultimate extra - the book itself. Don't think of one as a substitute for the other. If you enjoy one, dive into the other too.

I first saw this film on satellite TV and was entertained quite a bit, so eventually I grabbed it second-hand for a snip and have watched it again with similarly positive results. Although there are a few non-baseball associated themes to the storyline, since it has it's foundation in covering baseball aspects I think that this film is unlikely to attract non-baseball 'fans'. Fortunately, even though I live in the UK I DO have an interest in 'Major League Baseball' (the professional wing of the game played nationally in the USA), watch games on TV when possible and usually manage to go and see an MLB game or 2 if visiting somewhere in the USA where it is played.... Notwithstanding that, the film gained critical praise and made a healthy profit at the box-office - 1/3 of which came from overseas takings, so it proved to have universal appeal despite the 'niche' subject matter. I think that the Amazon synopsis for this film gives too much detail, so here's a cut from it to hopefully just outline the plot : "Based on real events in 2002, the film follows the unconventional tactics employed by Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), general manager of the cash-strapped Oakland Athletics baseball team, to rebuild his club after losing a few key players." On Blu-ray everything looks and sounds as good as you would expect of a modern release, but since it is a largely dialogue-based film which occurs mostly in buildings I don't necessarily think that it is essential to watch it in HD. Like cricket, MLB can be an entertaining spectator sport but also quite lengthy/boring and since, even more than cricket, MLB relies heavily during play and especially in the frequent breaks in a game (of which there are masses) to present/analyse pertinent statistics. Whilst this film does have the matter of player-performance statistics at it's core, and how they were utilised more fully to try and form a more successful MLB team, thankfully there is more going on than just that and certainly the ridiculous 'depth' to which media MLB statistics can go is not replicated ! I like to think of this film as more of a character-study for someone heavily involved in the management side of MLB, rather than what their aim was and/or the details of how they went about it. To support that assertion, whilst the cast does feature significant parts for the acting talents of Jonah Hill (the statistics 'nerd' employed by Beane) and Philip Seymour Hoffman (the team manager), and despite Hill also having received (for me, inexplicably) a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination, it is clear to me that the overwhelming amount of screen time is given to the Pitt character - hence his Best Actor Oscar nomination is far more understandable. Hill does feature, but not a lot, and Seymour Hoffman features even less ! We also see a lot of aspects of Beane's personal life, whereas we learn absolutely nothing of a similar nature for the Hill or Seymour Hoffman characters - absolutely nothing.... Having said that, I am not especially a big fan of Pitt the actor and whilst he does turn in an effective performance here, I never felt I was ever watching anything other than Brad Pitt acting in a film - for me, it is the story that 'lives' and it is the story that is the memorable feature of this film. So, the well-structured nature of the screenplay and how effectively the film story unfolds are crucial elements here and ultimately dictate how successful, for me, it turned out to be; despite a running-time in excess of 2hrs, I never felt bored or that things were 'strung out' excessively. What we have is a surprisingly amusing portrayal of how somebody quite ruthlessly followed a new, risky 'model' to re-launch a professional sports team - often to the detriment of his personal life, colleagues and employees; gaining notoriety, new players and success on one side of the balance but losing players, some respect and lots of heartbeats on the other ! Like some other films I've reviewed recently, I was now again going to mention that the production-values are good considering the small budget of the film, BUT then I saw that it cost some $50million - a bewildering figure when, for example, it is compared to the $47million budget (noted as it was discovered when writing a recent Amazon review for it) of the expansive 'Arrival', made just last year ! Quite where the money went here I cannot say, as whilst the cast is quite large nothing else really sticks out as above the norm; it is a well-made, well-produced drama with convincing sets (if sets they are, a lot looks like the real sporting location), but with few (normally costly ?) special-effects or exotic locations - maybe the 'talent' salaries, irrespective of their onscreen time, gobbled-up the budget ? ! On Blu-ray everything looks and sounds as good as you would expect of a modern release, but since it is a largely dialogue-based film which occurs mostly in buildings I don't necessarily think that it is essential to watch it in HD and, similarly, the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack is largely wasted for this type of production. The disc extras are dominated by a large selection of featurettes with a total running time well in excess of 1hr - not watched yet, but their titles suggest that they might not be too heavily reliant on being of the rather unfulfilling 'promotional' variety..... Whilst this film has a quite specific plot theme unlikely to appeal to a mass audience, there is scope for it being a decent watch for many irrespective of the sporting theme (and specifically about MLB) as it largely concentrates on the 'human' side to it, rather than the sporting action itself. It is well made, proficiently performed and looks good on Blu-ray - but probably would be fine on DVD as well, since there is so much dialogue as opposed to special-effects etc. I DO like MLB, which explains my initial attraction to it and why I had even more of an affinity to the story - nonetheless, whilst I did enjoy it as a sporting film, I enjoyed it more as a drama.

Great film Great drama. Makes me want to watch a game of Rounders, I mean 🏏 Baseball

Great movie if you love your sports

Excellent

Moneyball isn't focussed on just playing Baseball but instead the inner workings of building the greatest team. Hundreds of sports films, hundreds of them. Pretty sure Hollywood has tackled every type of sport, including Baseball several times over. Why should this one be any different? Well, this is the true story of the Oakland Athletics to which their General Manager at the time used a new technique of deciding a team: the Moneyball model. Using statistics and logic to pick the most effective players at the cheapest price, therefore building the ultimate economical team. Such a model could change the Baseball industry and negate years of traditional intuition. This is not so much about changing Baseball, but a personal journey for Billy Beane. He himself was chosen to play professionally, ditching his chances of further education. It didn't work out, and so he desired to change the system and defy the industry as a personal vendetta against them. Completely unconventional, having a computer system pick the most suitable players as opposed to listening to veterans who have something that algorithms do not: experience. Thoroughly enjoyed this film, and I can say I have no interest in Baseball (not particularly huge in the UK). A screenplay by Aaron Sorkin was destined to keep me captivated. Every script he writes is filled with sharp, concise dialogue that keeps you hooked on the characters. Brad Pitt looked effortlessly natural, owned every scene he was in. Jonah Hill...get ready guys...I actually liked. Finally!? A film I like him in. Cool, calm and calculated, was perfect at playing a graduate economist. Bennett Miller's direction was clean with a great mixture of old footage of Baseball games with the reconstructed acting. There's a scene towards the end where the result of a game relies on Chris Pratt hitting the ball. When he does...silence. I felt the tingles, was beautifully executed. Whilst the sport of Baseball does not interest me in the slightest, I loved the focus on the team building and thought it was brilliantly acted by everyone.

hey this movie is awesome and a sports fan like me had to have.but the cast storyline and it being real cant beat it in blu ray for $10!

Good movie to see again

A movie you'll like if you like sports or you like maths. If you happen to like both maths and sports, you HAVE to watch it.

After playing 3 times..CD was stuck and i am not happy with the CD quality..I do not recommend this CD to the new buyers

Mit diesem Satz verabschiedet sich Baseballtrainer Billy Beane(Brad Pitt) von der Distanz zu seinem Team und schaltet um auf Nähe. Für ihn, ein spektakulärer Schritt, und das obwohl Beane ansonsten ein Mann der klaren Worte, Fronten und Vorstellungen ist. Doch im Spieljahr 2001, als Beanes Team, die Oakland Athletics, fast Meister geworden wären, ändert sich alles. Drei Top-Spieler verlassen den Verein und für große Neueinkäufe fehlt schlichtweg das Geld. Beane erkennt, dass "sein" Sport ungerecht ist. Aber anstatt auf seine Scouts zu hören und für vielversprechende Spieler Geld auszugeben, dass er nicht hat, wagt Beane den Sprung ins Baseball-Neuland. Beane kauft den jungen Wirtschaftsabsolventen Peter Brand(Jonah Hill) für das Team. Der glaubt an eine statistische Formel, die es ermöglichen soll aus Spielern, deren Fähigkeiten durch normales Scouting nie entdeckt werden, ein schlagkräftiges Team zu machen. Bei Beane trifft Brand auf Verständnis, egal wie schräg und unkonventionell seine analytischen Rechnungen auch sein mögen. Für die Old-School Scouts in Oakland rütteln Brand und Beane jedoch an den Grundpfeilern des Sports. Auch Trainer Art Howe(Philip Seymour Hoffman) kann sich keinen Deut mit diesem System anfreunden. So starten die Oakland Atheltics schlecht in die Saison. Trainer, Mannschaft und Manager passen irgendwie nicht zusammen. Das Ergebnis sind Niederlagen. Erst als Beane, früher selbst ein vielversprechender Baseballspieler, den Spielern klar macht, wie sich verlieren anhört, geht ein Ruck durchs Team... Ach, wie schön war das denn? Ein guter, gefühlvoller Baseballfilm. Wer auf -Der Unbeugsame- steht -Das Feld der Träume- liebte und noch immer eine Gänsehaut bekommt, wenn er an -Aus Liebe zum Spiel- denkt, der ist bei -Moneyball- genau richtig. Der Film bezieht, wie die genannten Beispiele, seine magischen Momente nicht aus den Spielszenen des Sports heraus, sondern aus dem Universum von Kleinigkeiten, das den Baseball umgibt. Dabei geht es eher um Philosophie, als um Sport. Wie sich Jonah Hill und Brad Pitt die Bälle der Story zuspielen, das ist schlichtweg genial. Dabei braucht Bennet Millers Film eine gute halbe Stunde, bis er in die Erzählspur gleitet. Doch ab dem Moment, wo Beane seinen Scouts die Regeln für die neue Saison erklärt, gibt es kein Halten mehr. Dann rauscht die Geschichte wie ein Sturzbach dem Ende entgegen. -Moneyball-, nach dem Roman von Michael Lewis, beruht auf wahren Begebenheiten. Es ist eine dieser Sportgeschichten, bei der es nicht auf das Ende ankommt. Der Weg ist das Ziel, wenn Beane und Brand versuchen ihre Philosophie des Spiels umzusetzen. Das muss nicht gelingen, aber es wäre eine Schande, hätten sie es nicht versucht. -Moneyball- ist mit einigen Originalaufnahmen gespickt, um die Realität der Geschichte noch ein Stück herauszuheben. Das ist wunderbar gelungen, wäre aber vermutlich nicht nötig gewesen, denn: Was Brad Pitt und Jonah Hill hier vor der Kamera zeigen, dass ist Realität pur. Genau so sollte gutes Schauspiel sein. Wenn dazu noch Drehbuch und Kamera stimmen, dann kann die Magie des Mediums Film die Regentschaft übernehmen. Bei -Moneyball- passiert genau das!